'Idol' threat: Santa Cruz's James Durbin talks about music, fame and his life-changing experience at the eye of the "American Idol" hurricane

James Durbin's life is not a fairy tale. To characterize it as such would be to belittle what the 22-year-old Santa Cruzan has endured in his life. But considering what has happened to Durbin in the last few weeks, his story is beginning to sound like the kind of crazy movie pitch that Hollywood producers can't resist: Equal parts "Rocky," "Good Will Hunting" and "Charlie & the Chocolate Factory," with a spoonful of "The King's Speech" tossed in as well.

A couple of months ago, Durbin was just another guy in Santa Cruz, a would-be musician nursing a dream, bouncing from job to job, with an infant son and the burden of carrying not one but two high-stigma neurological conditions.

Today, he's on his way to becoming an international celebrity, performing every week on TV worldwide, attending Hollywood movie premieres and musically collaborating with some of the biggest names in the recording industry.

These days, they don't even make rockets that fly that high that fast.

The "American Idol" phenom took some time from his hectic new schedule to talk to the Sentinel about his dream-come-true experiences.

"Before Idol' began," he said by phone the day after making the cut to the final 12, "it was just day-to-day living, waking up at whatever time, or whenever son Hunter wakes up, and then just doing our thing all day and hoping something good comes out of it.

"Now, it's waking up at six in the morning, sometimes getting only five hours of sleep, and it's straight to the studio for rehearsals. Then it's red carpets, video shoots for Ford, all sorts of stuff."

Along with his fellow contestants, Durbin is being housed in an enormous Beverly Hills villa. When he isn't doing meet-and-greets with celebs and dealing with enormous waves of fan love on his Twitter and Facebook accounts, he's spending time in the studio with producers such as Don Was, Jimmy Jonsin and Jimmy Iovine, each of whom qualifies as a superstar in their profession.

"Although I just met these people," Durbin said of his big-name producers, "I feel like I've known them forever."

Durbin had been talking about performing on "American Idol" for years, as far back as his mid-teens when the combined effects of Tourette's and Asperger's syndrome made it difficult for him to even have a normal conversation. In fact, he said, he auditioned for "Idol" two years ago and was not selected, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

"It is a dream come true," he said. "But now I have a different mindset going into it. Before it was all about personal gain, but now it's for my family. Once you have that kind of real meaning to it and start putting that energy out there, it's going to manifest. And it's coming back for me."

Before last week, Durbin had established himself as "Idol's" resident metal rocker. Then, he threw a curveball by singing a stirring rendition of Paul McCartney's power ballad "Maybe I'm Amazed."

Durbin said he's making his own decisions about what to sing each week. His producers will suggest ideas but "it's a mutual decision. They don't ever pressure me into singing a certain song if I don't want to sing it."

His dealings with national media, he said, have focused largely on one of two subjects: his struggles with Tourette's and comparisons to 2009 "Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert. He's been approached by the families of others with Asperger's and Tourette's. He has also dealt with speculation of how he might handle the high-pressure and high-profile situations that come with being on one of America's most highly rated shows.

"The thing about Asperger's is that it's about social awkwardness, and not being able to contain yourself and being overwhelmed in social situations," he said. "I'm just so busy that there's no time to be overwhelmed. I'm enjoying it and I'm not looking at it as work. I'm just having tons of fun."

As for the upcoming elimination shows that push on ever closer to the naming of the "Idol" winner in the show's 10th season, Durbin, pointing to his past experience in musical theater and to the fact he has even done country music before, said he enjoys surprising people. "I'm trying to make my life full of surprises. Theater, rock, karaoke, the country thing, mix it up into one big old mush pot. It gives me so many different options."

He sees some friends and family each week when they visit to see the performance. He said his partner Heidi is "my rock," and that he's deeply gratified at what he's heard of the frenzy his appearances are creating in Santa Cruz County.

"I'm really, really stoked to hear that. It's really awesome to know that I still have the support from my hometown. No matter what happens after this, I know I'm going to still come back to a town that loves and supports me."